Although one person can make a difference, there is truth to the saying that it takes a village to raise a child. Sometimes that “village” is a combination of individuals and organizations, and sometimes that “child” is a group of people.
“We want to be a resource to others,” said Tim Mathis, senior pastor of FBC Selma. “Where we lacked experience, we now have a little experience. If we could help someone at square one, we’re happy to do that.”
Starting in late May, about 90 college students are headed to 10 states and 17 countries as part of One Mission Students, Alabama Baptists’ collegiate summer missions program.
Sometimes, finding unreached people groups means getting your truck stuck in a riverbed, driving 12 hours and traveling to village after village after village, asking if anyone knows anything about an unengaged and unreached people group.
After serving in South Sudan more than 20 years and having an intense desire to see people reached with the gospel, missionaries Peter and Shauna Swann went in pursuit of God’s will. A new opportunity would eventually “take flight.”
Debra Abston and Kimberly Posey of Pickens County attribute their missions training as children as well as Sunday School teachers through the years for instilling in them a heart for sharing the gospel and focusing on the Great Commission.
This year’s Week of Prayer for International Missions, set for Dec. 1–8, kicks off the season of the LMCO, which this year has a national goal of $205 million and a goal of $12 million for Alabama.
“Don’t believe it when someone tells you that you are too old for God to use you,” writes Barbara Eubanks. “Our availability is more important than our ability.”
